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Constitution

1. TITLE

The name of the group shall be Western Family History Association and the approved Irish language version shall be Cumann Stair Teaghlaigh an Iarthair.

2. AIMS

The objects of the Association are to promote an awareness, knowledge, appreciation and study of genealogy, family history and general heritage, especially relating to the western counties of Ireland. A special interest shall be the identification, documentation and conservation of relevant data sources, and to provide representation to the appropriate statutory authorities on matters pertaining to genealogy and family history and to publish relevant material where appropriate.

3. OBJECTIVES

The objectives of the Association shall be attained by the following activities:

Holding meetings to which expert speakers will be invited to speak.
Organising site visits or excursions.
Disseminating / Publishing relevant material where appropriate and consistent with the aims.
Co-operating with other organisations having mutual interests.
Develop special interest and expertise in identification, documentation and conservation of relevant data sources.

4. MEMBERSHIP

The Group shall be non-party-political and non-sectarian. Membership, at the discretion of the Committee, is open to all persons with an interest in family history or heritage, especially where this interest relates to Ireland’s western counties. Applications for membership should be made to the Hon. Secretary or to any member of the Committee and should be accompanied by the stipulated subscription. The outcome of all applications shall be notified in writing to the applicant. The Committee reserves the right to refuse membership of its organisation.

5. SUBSCRIPTION

The annual subscription shall be at a fixed price per person, and shall be reviewed annually at the AGM. It will fall due within 30 days of the AGM each year.

6. COMMITTEE

A committee shall manage the Association, on behalf of the general membership. The committee shall be composed of the following officers: a Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, Honorary Secretary, Honorary Treasurer, Public Relations Officer, and up to 10 other members, and shall be elected each year at the Annual General Meeting. All meetings of the committee will be chaired by the Chairperson or, in the event of his/her absence, by the Vice-Chairperson. In the event of a committee member resigning from the committee, the remaining members of the committee shall co-opt another member to fill the vacant position.
The term for officers of the Committee will normally be limited to three years. Any officer or committee member absent from 3 consecutive committee meetings without valid excuse shall be deemed to have resigned from the committee.

7. MANAGEMENT

The general management of the affairs of the Association shall be vested in the committee, who shall perform all such acts as may be deemed necessary or expedient to further the objects of the Association.

8. BANKING PROCEDURE

The Association shall have a banking Account(s) into which all monies received shall be lodged. All cheques shall be signed by the Hon. Treasurer, and must be co-signed by the Chairperson or the Hon. Secretary. The account of the Association shall be closed for audit purposes on the last day of December in each year.

9. COMMITTEE MEETINGS

All meetings shall be convened by the Hon. Secretary in consultation with the Chairperson, who shall give due notice of dates, times and agendas of such meetings to each committee member. A quorum for committee meetings shall be a minimum of 5 members, including at least two officers. The Hon. Secretary shall keep minutes of meetings and records of attendance. At each meeting, the Hon. Secretary shall read aloud the minutes of the last previous meeting and, if there is agreement that the minutes are correct, the Chairperson shall then sign the minute book, thereby verifying that the recorded minutes were found to be correct and complete.

10. ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

The AGM of the Association will be held annually. Notice, in writing, must be given to every paid-up member at least 31 days prior to the meeting. All members of the Association may submit motions for discussion at the AGM. Any such motions must be received by the Hon. Secretary not later than 14 days prior to the meeting.

11. EXTRAORDINARY GENERAL MEETING (EGM)

An EGM of the Association may be called by the Committee or by requisition signed by not less than 8 ordinary members of the Association, delivered to the Hon. Secretary, who in turn must call such a meeting within 4 weeks from the date or receipt of such requisition. Only the business stated in the requisition may be debated at the EGM, and the details of the said business should be included in the notice of meeting sent to members.

12. VOTING RIGHTS AND QUORUM

A quorum for an Annual or Extraordinary General Meeting shall be 30% of paid members. If a quorum is not reached, the meeting shall be re-convened and all members informed of the new date and venue. Those present at any such re-convened meeting shall constitute a quorum for that meeting. At all general meetings, each member will have one vote only. Voting at all General Meetings shall be by show of hands, except when a ballot is demanded by being formally proposed and seconded, and a simple majority supports such demand. The Chairperson will remain neutral and has a casting vote only.

13. DISSOLUTION

The Association may be dissolved only by the vote of not less than 75% of the members present at an Extraordinary General Meeting convened for that specific purpose. An audited financial report shall be presented at such meeting. The dissolution will not be effected until the assets are disposed of and all liabilities fully discharged. In the event of insufficient funds to clear liabilities, the deficiency shall be contributed, in equal shares, by the existing members.

14. INDEMNITY

All officers of the Association shall be indemnified by the Association for any expenses incurred in executing their duties on the direction of, and on behalf of, the committee of the Association.

15. ACCEPTANCE OF RULES

Membership of the Association shall imply the acceptance of each and all of these rules and any additions and/or alterations that may be agreed to at General Meetings.

16. INTERPRETATION

The Committee for the time being shall have full power to decide any question for which these rules have made no provision, and shall be responsible for proposing the appropriate amendment at the earliest possible time.

17. AMENDMENT OF RULES

These rules shall not be amended, added to, or otherwise altered in any way, save with the consent of at least 75% of the members present and qualified to vote at the Annual General Meeting or Extraordinary General Meeting called for that purpose in accordance with these rules.

Constitution adopted at the Annual General Meeting held on 18 January 2012.

Amendment to Item 6 adopted at the Annual General Meeting on 21 January 2015: “That the number of members to be elected to the Committee be increased from 7 to 10”.

Amendment to Item 6 adopted at the Annual General Meeting on 20 January 2016: “The term for officers of the Committee will normally be limited to three years” to replace the clause “No officer shall hold the same office for longer than 3 consecutive years”.